


A Shoulder To Lean On

by TheHomestuckWhovian



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-03-19
Updated: 2018-03-19
Packaged: 2019-04-04 14:14:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 957
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14022033
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheHomestuckWhovian/pseuds/TheHomestuckWhovian
Summary: Coran is surrounded by children, and he is reminded of that often as time goes on.(Or, Coran Coran the Gorgeous Man adopts all the Paladins plus more and is the true Space Dad™)





	1. Grief

**Author's Note:**

> I am not as experienced with Coran as I am with other characters. This is a challenge I am willing to take.
> 
> This is part of my ongoing movement to avoid shipping like it's the Black Plague until I feel it's safe to play around with again.
> 
> Welcome to my gen cocoon.

Coran found her outside in the fields one night, staring at the star-filled sky. He imagined the servants would not be happy that she got dirt and plant stains on her sleeping gown, but right now, he was more concerned about how exhausted and mournful she looked.

He sat beside her, resisting the urge to say anything. If Allura wanted him to speak, she would let him know.

It was times like these that he always felt horribly out of his depth. Allura had had two wonderful parents who had always done their best for her, and now she only had one parent, and an advisor who loved her like family, but was reminded that there was a good reason he never settled down and became a parent.

Finally, Allura broke the silence.

"It still hurts," she practically whispered. "I don't understand why it still hurts. Everyone seems to have gotten through it, so why does it still feel like a hole is cut out of me?"

He held out his arm as a silent offer, and she leaned against his shoulder, allowing him to wrap his arm around her as a gesture of comfort.

"We haven't really gotten over it," Coran admitted. "It's easier to pretend we're okay than to admit that it still hurts. It certainly can feel like you are the only one who hasn't moved on when everyone is pretending to be alright around you, doesn't it?"

She nodded.

"You know, you don't have to deal with this alone." He squeezed her shoulder in reassurance. "No one ever wanted you to think you couldn't come to us when you were upset and needed to grieve."

She bit her lip, before quietly saying, "Everyone tells me that she is in a better place, but it doesn't help. I feel...I feel selfish for preferring she was here instead."

"For some, it's easier to deal with the pain by saying that the person is happy wherever they are. It's not selfish for you to wish your mother was still with us, Allura. It's natural."

He didn't say anything as tears began to drip down her face.

"I miss her."

"I know."

He wrapped his other arm around her and held her closely as she buried her face into his shoulder, his shirt absorbing her tears as she cried.

Coran was not meant to be a parent, but he could be there for Allura in her grief and, when she was ready and her face was dry, share stories of her mother when she was alive and well.

He wasn't sure it was enough.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Last year, I lost my grandmother. As long as I had been alive, she had been battling lymphoma. She suffered from lymphoma, breast cancer, colon cancer, occasional bouts of skin cancer, and numerous non-cancerous health problems. She was the strongest and kindest person I knew, and I wish I could be half the person she was.
> 
> A lot of this part of the story is taken from how I felt when the wound was still fresh and after a while when it began to fester.
> 
> It still hurts.
> 
> The purpose of the story is to show the point when Coran "adopted" numerous characters. Meaning some of these stories are going to be more lighthearted, but some aren't. It's going to be kind of a roller coaster. I hope you're prepared.
> 
> Thank you for reading. I'll update as soon as possible.


	2. Home

Coran sat on the step by Lance's pod, scrolling through his tablet to check how the repairs were going.

Hunk and Pidge had been sending him updates from their separate locations and asking for updates about Lance's condition. Both of them knew that Lance was stable and going to be okay, but they still asked for an update whenever they checked in about repairs.

He spared a glance to the boy in the pod, ignoring the feeling of guilt curled up in his chest and focusing on how grateful he was for such a fine boy being one of their Paladins.

Lance had seen the danger they were in and his first action was to protect Coran. A true Blue Paladin, charismatic and loyal and brave, just as Blaytz had been. The two would have gotten on like a ship on fire, or they would have hated each other. Coran liked to imagine the former.

He never knew the fate of the former Blue Paladin. He had seen Alfor's death himself, and he had heard the news that Gyrgan had died defending his planet from a Galra fleet after hiding the Yellow Lion away. Coran knew it was likely they perished defending their people from Zarkon's wrath, but part of him hoped.

The man sighed, patting the pod beside him. That was a hole he couldn't go down. Even if they had survived, they would be long dead now. Best to focus on the present. Best to focus on the children that had come to fill the holes left behind by his old friends.

In some ways, Lance also reminded Coran of himself.

Nope, that was too terrifying to focus on. Coran didn't want to consider that Lance struggled with the same troubles that haunted him even as he left his days of being as young as the boy behind.

Lance had stood there with him in the control room and they had talked about missing their home planets. The boy wanted more than anything to go home, and then had been willing to die lightyears away from his home for a silly old man with no home to return to, no people who would miss him other than Allura and the Paladins who barely knew him.

Coran felt as guilty as if he had set the bomb off himself, and he couldn't distract himself from it now. He could have been the reason Lance couldn't go back to his family. They would have never known their son died a hero.

Being a Paladin was risky. He had seen the Paladins of old nearly die too many times to count. And now the weight of being a Paladin was greater than before, and it was rested on the shoulders of children who just wanted to be safe with their families on their home planet.

"I'll make sure you go back to Earth," he promised, even though he knew Lance couldn't hear him.

Coran couldn't return to Altea, but he could repay Lance by doing what he could to keep him alive until he could return home and be with his family again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Me:** *writes Lance best*  
>  **Also Me:** *has Lance unconscious for the entirety of his chapter*

**Author's Note:**

> My tumblr is [boopboopitydoop](http://boopboopitydoop.tumblr.com), and if you wish to harass me about how much of a Debbie Downer I am, you are welcome to shoot me a message.
> 
> Thank y'all for reading!


End file.
